r/iiser

May they rest in peace. My deepest condolences to their family and loved ones.

​

I want a suggestion from seniors regarding what are the configuration required for laptop.

This is for my brother who got admission in BS MS IISER Mohali.

His major will be in Physics and minors will be related to Astrophysics.

I remember reading posts back in 2025 about the discontent of students with regards to the math department at IISER berhampur. Has the situation changed? The faculty seem relatively active looking at the website however looking at the curriculum MTH101 has less rigor than the other IISER's courses.

I'm unsure if this is because of the expectation that people getting into Berhampur wouldn't have taken math in their 11th and 12th but looking at the inflation I don't think that assumption works anymore since the caliber of students getting into Berhampur this year would probably be equivalent to those getting into Mohali-Bhopal last year (assuming IAT was a perfectly accurate measurement of intellect and ability).

Looking at IISER tvm in comparison, MTH101 involves groups and symmetry while I've read single variable calc involves rigorous epsilon-delta proofs, such specifics aren't mentioned in the syallabus so I was wondering what the situation of the math department and the math ug courses at berhampur is now. According to the syllabus even probability is encountered in only the 3rd year while it's encountered earlier in some of the other IISERS.

We all hear about alumni doing phd/research abroad, but what about those that stay in the country? After phd, what are their plans? As someone who wants to stay in India, it feels like I'd feel kinda isolated in the community

some sites show that tvm has better undergraduate opportunities whereas bhopal is not at par. I'm really confused.

I am really interested in Astronomy in general from a very young age, I am hoping to get admission into IISER Pune but as a back up option, I am interested IISER Mohali, how is the Campus there, and more importantly, how is the Astronomy Minor?

If anyone who has attended previous year programme or is trying this time. Kindly guide me thorugh. How do you work on the research topic of your choice also, what kind of output from your side have higher chances of selection

How much is the mess fees and health insurance fees for the 1rst semester? Will i have other expenses apart from the 78k mentioned and mess/insurance fees?

I'm currently doing my MSc in Biosciences and I'm honestly very confused about what I should do after graduating.

For the longest time, I've been telling myself that I should probably get a job first, maybe work as a project associate/research assistant for a year, gain some experience, and then think about a PhD. Part of me feels like going directly from MSc → PhD might be rushing things.

But the problem is... I really want to do a PhD. 😭

I genuinely enjoy research. I like molecular biology, cancer research, computational biology, nanomedicine, reading papers, trying to understand mechanisms, etc. During my internship and MSc research, I've realized that I actually like the process of investigating a question rather than just studying something for an exam.

At the same time, I'm scared of romanticizing the idea of a PhD.

I know a PhD isn't just "becoming a scientist." It's years of experiments failing, questionable results, dealing with supervisors, writing papers, uncertainty, and probably questioning my life choices at 2 AM. 😭

There's another thing I'm really confused about: does a PhD actually give you career stability in life sciences?

I'm not expecting a PhD to magically make me rich, but I do want a reasonably stable career and financial independence eventually. I've heard completely different opinions — some people say a PhD is basically necessary for research/R&D and opens doors that an MSc can't, while others say you can spend 5+ years doing a PhD and still struggle to find a permanent position afterward.

My long-term goal is to work in research, potentially in industry/R&D. So I'm wondering whether a PhD is actually a good investment for that goal, especially if I do it abroad and it's fully funded.

I also don't want to do a PhD simply because I'm scared of entering the job market or because I feel behind compared with my peers.

So I'm currently considering:

1. MSc → directly apply for funded PhDs abroad

or

2. MSc → work as a project associate/research assistant for 1–2 years → then apply for PhDs

Does working beforehand actually make a significant difference to PhD applications, or is it unnecessary if I already have research experience through my MSc/internships?

And more importantly:

For those who have actually done a PhD in life sciences — did it improve your career stability and opportunities, or did it just postpone the uncertainty?

I'd especially appreciate perspectives from people who went MSc → PhD directly and people who worked for a couple of years first.

I don't want someone to simply tell me "follow your passion." 😭 I want the honest version — if you were in my position, would you do the PhD immediately, work first, or reconsider the PhD altogether?

i heard some rumors that someone committed this by jumping off the building is it true?

Hey guys

Me and my friend have started a whatsapp group for students who've frozen dse iiser bhopal or are going to freeze it in the further rounds. It'd be great to communicate with each other and pass information along ✌️

Hoping to meet you in our group

Dm me for the link as the channel doesn't allow it

Literally one of my most fav iiser, but people usually hate it 😭, so like any negative points you would like to add if you're in berhampur??

Btw i already know this "all iisers are equal" thing, but yeah, there definitely must be some cons about bpr...

The biggest con for me is the fees...

Heyy!! I got allotted iiser behrampur. But I'm pretty confused. You gotta pay the rest fee for iiser after freezing the seat right? And i have to report after i freeze the seat right?? Nothing as long as i am floating??

...

IISER Tirupati was established back in 2015. While growing pains are understandable for a newer institute, it has been over a decade, and the state of the Physics Department is getting increasingly difficult to overlook.

​If you are a prospective student planning to join or a current student considering majoring in Physics here, here is the ground reality:

​1. Stagnant Faculty Strength & Shortage:

​Over the last 3 years, the total faculty count has essentially remained stagnant or even slightly reduced due to faculty departures balancing out new joins. Despite continuous claims of "active hiring," the department still sits at around ~10 faculty members.

​Research activity across the board is limited. While there are a few genuinely good professors, many are heavily tied up with administrative responsibilities, leaving them with little bandwidth to mentor students.

​2. Severe Project Caps vs. Batch Size:

​We have an 80+ student physics major batch.

​Faculty are strictly capped at taking a maximum of 3 students for semester projects. With ~10 professors, simple math shows that a large chunk of the batch is left stranded without an internal project guide.

​3. No External Semester Projects Allowed

​Despite the lack of internal capacity, the administration does not allow students to pursue semester projects externally.

​IIT Tirupati is right next door and has an active collaboration with our institute, yet students aren’t allowed to utilize nearby options to fulfill project requirements.

​4. Limited Electives & Core Course Quality

​Compared to older IISERs or other national institutes, our course variety is extremely narrow.

​Major advanced courses face serious logistical issues. For example, for an essential course like Quantum Field Theory (QFT), early classes were delayed/disrupted because the department couldn't find a post-doc to take it. Relying on post-docs rather than permanent faculty for core, advanced major courses is becoming standard practice here.

​Key foundational courses in emerging areas (like Machine Learning) have to rely on external faculty due to zero in-house expertise.

​5. Massive Domain Gaps in Research Fields

​There is very little diversity in research specializations.

​If you want to work explicitly in Experimental Condensed Matter Physics (CMP) or Quantum Information Theory (QIT), there is virtually no dedicated faculty. While some professors cover broad theoretical areas, niche/modern subfields are entirely absent.

​6. Rushing New Programs Without Departmental Infrastructure

​The institute introduced programs like Economic Sciences without having an independent, full-fledged Economics or Statistics faculty base. Launching new verticals without stabilizing existing core departments creates half-baked curriculums across the board.

​TLDR; IISER Tirupati has potential, but the chronic faculty shortage, research facility gaps, and rigid administrative rules around projects make pursuing physics here very frustrating. Think twice, talk to current students across different batches, and weigh your options carefully before committing to this institute.

I was wondering if anyone else has selected dse , it'd be better to connect before joining cuz that'd be of great help , cya in dms ✌️